Donald L. DeVries, Jr.

Mr. DeVries has tried well over 100 cases to verdict. Since he and his partners established Goodell DeVries in 1988, he has built an award-winning regional medical malpractice defense litigation practice and is known for successfully representing many notable clients in trial and appellate courts.

According to clients quoted in The Best Lawyers of America, Mr. DeVries is “a giant among his peers” and “uses his vast experience to recommend thoughtful defense strategies, has the respect of the plaintiff’s bar, and utilizes his many relationships to obtain successful outcomes on cases.” Further, “[Mr. DeVries’] quiet yet strong manner provides clients great comfort and his adversaries great concern. His ethics are unassailable and his competence is unquestionable. “When I have a matter that requires great legal skill coupled with common sense and intellect, Don is my lawyer of first choice.” As described by Chambers USA, a leading guide to the legal industry, he is a “superb lawyer” who is “top of the heap in medical malpractice and products liability defense in Maryland.” Being recognized as a leader by his peers, Mr. DeVries was honored as a recipient of The Daily Record's Leadership in Law Award (2006). He has consecutively been honored by The Best Lawyers in America every year since 1995. Mr. DeVries also has been recognized as one of Maryland’s Top 10 attorneys numerous times since 2007 as voted by his peers and announced by Maryland Super Lawyer magazine.

In 2005, Mr. DeVries was inducted into the prestigious International Academy of Trial Lawyer (IATL), an honor society that is limited to 500 of the best trial lawyers in the United States. Mr. DeVries is also a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL), which comprises the best of the trial bar from the United States and Canada and is widely considered to be the premier professional trial organization in America. Mr. DeVries has held the rank of Advocate in the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) since 1984. He represented Maryland as a member of the National Board of Directors of ABOTA from 1995 - 2010 and also served as President of the ABOTA Maryland Chapter from 1992 - 1995.

Mr. DeVries has been extremely active in the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC), having served as a member of the nine-member Board of Directors that governs the 2300-member organization. He previously chaired its Medical Malpractice Committee, served as a faculty member in its National Trial Academy, and has been a speaker in several of its programs. Since 1988, Mr. DeVries has also been a member of the International Society of Barristers (ISOB), Association of Defense Trial Attorneys (ADTA), and Litigation Counsel of America (LCA).

In addition to his activities as a lawyer, Mr. DeVries has been extremely active in community affairs. In 1993, as a result of his familiarity with Maryland’s Emergency Medical System (EMS) through his service as Chairman of the Shock Trauma Board, he was appointed by Governor Schaefer as the first Chairman of the EMS Board governing Maryland’s entire emergency medical system, a position that he still holds, having been subsequently reappointed as Chairman by Governors Glendening, Ehrlich and O’Malley. The Board plays a pivotal role in ensuring EMS services to the citizens of Maryland. The EMS system consists of nine trauma centers, numerous specialty referral centers for burns, hand trauma, cardiac and stroke emergencies, 50 emergency rooms, 10 Maryland State Police helicopters, 600 ambulances, and over 27,000 pre-hospital providers.

Recipient of the Maryland Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians' EMS Provider of the Year Award (2006)

Oxford's Who's Who Registry of Extraordinary Professionals, 1993

Marquis Who's Who in American Law

Marquis Who’s Who in America

Marquis Who’s Who in Finance and Business

George W. Yancey Memorial Award from the International Association of Defense Counsel for the most outstanding contribution to the Defense Counsel Journal with the article "Back to the Future? Product Liability Class Actions and Proposed Rule 23 Changes" (1988)